A downtown Vancouver residential tower will boast North America's first automated, non-pallet parking farage.

Jameson House, an exclusive, 37-storey glass tower with a completion date of 2009, will incorporate a European system that automatically parks a car without driving it.

Residents will pull into a transfer station, leave their car and lock it, then swipe a card to activate the system. A mechanized shuttle takes the car and parks it in an open sopot in the five-level, 230-spot garage.

When the driver wishes to leave, the system retrieves the car in as little as 90 seconds. The building will also include two levels of conventional parking. The builders claim the system saves time and space and increases security for both owner and vehicle.